As touching with ethnic groups and wandering among endless peaks and valleys where Miao people reside, I had been always impressed that they have so many branches and scatter every where.
Take the market of Zhiyun town for example. Different ethnic peoples gather at the marketing place in order to exchange domestic products and show off their distinguished beautiful costumes. some people selling potato are in pointed hat and blue dress and they are called Blue Miao; some wear black headband are classified as White in accordance with their pleated white skirt; still some, wandering in the market, are called Horn Miao due to their hair style of rhinoceros horn.
Just in this case, it is suddenly impressed that the minority customs of Zhiyun, instead of the impression of few differences as compared with any other places, is extremely strong and Zhi Yun Miao and Buyi Autonomous County is very reasonable. The majority in this market, however, are those in deep blue cloth and headband hemmed with colorful strips at the sleeve, which looks very elegance. Though with similar garments, they are actually belongs to two different groups i.e. Miao and Buyi. The situation make seems that Miao emerged into Buyi or they have fused each other. After all you can not distinguish them just according to cloth.
If follow them back home after market along the twisted mountain path, you will certainly access to the country of Buyi. Out of Zhiyun for ten miles open to you a big valley of hundred of miles down mountains.
Down the valley are rivers, deep trees, rice paddy field and hided villages. As the popular saying descript, it is unnecessary to ask who are taking banana in left hand and tangerine in right hand in that they must be Buyi for sure in 80-90%. Unlike Zhiyun country which is highland and ridge of 1000m, here is only 500m to 600m in valleys where Huohua Buyi townships situate right in. However, it impress you the differences of not just distance and level but mostly two different worlds. In the this county, Hundred miles of leanness, shady and cool highland in north-south direction is boundary of Miao and while these productive paddy field, the scope of Huo Hua town ship, is the home town of Buyi people.
I eventually realized that there is no any relation between the administrative division and nationality distribution. The minorities, on contrary, are more segmented and isolated than before attributing largely to administrative section. And the map on hand seems imply little about this, nevertheless, they are the unit of verged and isolated.
Suddenly an idea came to mind. The mountains and rivers I have marched constitute the real tri-dimensional map. Miao people inhabit and communicate at a certain level along the mountains and yet the people of Buyi, Dong and Shui expand their countries along rivers and valleys.
With comparison to Miao characterized in straightforward and freedom, Bu Yi people are gentle and connotation, which can be obviously shown from their garment. Miao people prefer to colorful dress with embroidery and batik, accordingly Bu Yi like to take blue dress hemmed with laces at sleeves and collapsible in neat and simple.
Bu Yi women are good at weaving cloth of varied designs and clear lines with blue and white threads on loom on the basis of blue color. There produce such local family cloth in Huo Hua Bu Yi area. This specialty is processed in procedures covering dyeing in indigo and then applying glue made of pig leather and cow leather in order to have leather shinning effects. Such clothes are only for the important occasions like wedding, funeral and marketing day etc.
The set off of blue and green and the harmony of human and nature are my impressions to Bu Yi country in conclusion.
